Yeoh Siew Hoon gets stuck into Eric Clapton's autobiography and learns about the man, the musician, the traveller -

In his autobiography Eric Clapton shares more than his music – he bares his soul. He talks about his mother who turned out to be his grandmother, his women (too many to count), his drugs and drinking problems, his deep insecurities, the tragic death of his son, his guitar collection, his music and, lastly, his travels.

I found his narration of his travel experiences interesting because as much as he was a musician, he was also a traveller – enjoying much like us the simple pleasures of a holiday in the sun with the family and yet, barely tolerating the whole process that travel has become today.

In the later part of the book, where he talks about his last world tour, he relates his return trip to America from Europe. "Because I had a one-way ticket, I was a prime suspect for blowing up the plane, and the security people joyfully took me apart as usual.

"I swore quietly to myself for the hundredth time that I would never come back to this country again. Of course it's the same everywhere now, but for some reason it feels worse in America."

"I used to love traveling," he continued. "I've always felt it was in my blood, but I can't stomach it anymore and literally dread going to an airport."

He then goes on. "The interesting thing about this tour has been the quiet, and sometimes happy knowledge that I may be going to some of these places, places I have been visiting all my life, for the very last time."

Sad indeed for his fans if that day should come to pass but every traveller comes to that point of the road – where we say, it's the last trip, the last time.

But something always happens to make us move again.

I am always excited at the beginning of each trip – be it a short business trip or an extended holiday break – but I also know when it's time to end the trip and return home, and I am always happy to come home. And then I will say, how nice, I will be staying put for a while and within a couple of weeks, a restlessness washes over me and my feet start tapping.

And then I start to dream – of sitting on a stool in Saigon, sipping coffee and dipping spring rolls in pungent fish sauce; of walking on that beach in Samui and letting the sea water wash over my feet; of lying on a patch of grass in southern France while the sun blazes overhead and a cool breeze gently blows over my face; of sitting on top of Borobudur and gazing out at the rice fields and thinking nothing …

Clapton too has his favourite moments.

The first thing he does when he arrives in Tokyo is to meet a friend (Mr Udo) at the Hama Steakhouse for Kobe beef. "I will go to my hotel, drop my bags and go straight to the restaurant, and I have been doing that for the last 34 years. I love Japanese food, and while I am there, I will probably eat with Mr Udo three times a week, the finest food you can imagine."

We all have our favourite food wherever we go. I can't say I am such a creature of habit as Mr Clapton but in Hong Kong, I always head to the Shang Palace for "ee fu" noodles. And the last three times I've been in Hong Kong, I've been to Ye Shanghai where I love the dim sum.

Clapton too is grateful for technology and how it helps him keep in touch with his family and to stay current during long trips. "I honestly can't imagine life without I-Chat or I-Sight," he said.

On this last world tour, he also covered other parts of Asia – Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and China. "The first week in Indonesia was like a blur to me. It seems my ability to transcend jet lag has completely disappeared in my old age, and my natural curiosity has diminished a great deal, so that venturing out of my room had become a highly debatable occupation."

The weather didn't help, of course, "leaving me limp like a lettuce leaf".

One city he was looking forward to was Shanghai because he had never been there but "with all the expectations I had about Shanghai, it was a major disappointment".

"Flying in through the smog and blinking lights atop the bizarre array of new skyscrapers, it felt like I was entering a real-life version of Blade Runner and for some reason, I was instantly on my guard.

"That feeling never really left me for the next few days and I was always on edge, from the fractious stare-down with the immigration officer when I arrived, to the constant side-stepping of of street hustlers, selling knock-offs of everything from DVDs to Mont Blanc pens."

And while he had had "huge trepidations" about New Zealand and Australia, it was "all for nothing".

"It proved beyond doubt that my attitude and state of mind would always govern my impressions of people, places and things," he wrote.

In this, Clapton is merely human. In his guitar playing, however, he is ‘God'.

This book is a keeper.

Watch Clapton on Clapton here: http://www.amazon.com/Clapton-Autobiography-Eric/dp/038551851X

Yeoh Siew Hoon, one of Asia's most respected travel editors and commentators, writes a regular column on news, trends and issues in the hospitality industry for 4Hoteliers.com.

Siew Hoon, who has covered the tourism industry in Asia/Pacific for the past 20 years, runs SHY Ventures Pte Ltd. Her other writings can be found at www.thetransitcafe.com

Get your weekly cuppa of news, gossip, humour and opinion at the cafe for travel insiders.